1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image forming method, an information processing apparatus, an image forming system, a computer program, and a computer readable storage medium. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system including an information processing apparatus configured to request a print, and an image forming apparatus configured to print an image.
2. Description of the Related Art
The following methods are generally usable in the creation of a document by an OS (operating system) or the print processing by print application programs.
(1) A general operating system, such as Windows®, includes an SDK (Software Development Kit) which can provide a common application program interface (API) for fundamental print attribute settings and print instructions.
(2) A user interface (dialog) of an information processing apparatus, as one of ordinary operations of a printer driver, enables a user to designate optional information. When any optional function is designated, the information processing apparatus can create final application data based on the designated optional function and transmit the created application data to a printing apparatus.
(3) When appropriate utility application program is installed in an information processing apparatus, the information processing apparatus can perform bidirectional communications with a printing apparatus to obtain optional information from the printing apparatus. The information processing apparatus can display the optional information obtained from the printing apparatus, and a user can determine desirable print settings with reference to the displayed information.
However, the above-described conventional techniques encounter the following problems in the creation of a document or in the print processing based on application program.
(a) The development kit involved in an operating system, such as SDK of Windows®, is limited in the capability of setting print attributes for a printing apparatus and therefore cannot instruct a sufficient number of functions. Accordingly, even if the printing apparatus has highly advanced functions, available functions are limited to only the fundamental functions of the printing apparatus. None of the value-added functions are available.
(b) The procedure for utilizing optional functions or optional devices of a printing apparatus is complicated. Firstly, an information processing apparatus displays a user interface (dialog) to enable a user to select and designate optional items. Secondly, the information processing apparatus creates final application data based on the designated optional information. Accordingly, the entire procedure for setting the optional items is time-consuming and not easy.
(c) The abilities of application programs, printer drivers and conventional application program interfaces (APIs) prepared and usable for a printing apparatus are insufficient because the settings of various print attributes for realizing optimized print processing cannot be realized.
As a technique capable of solving the above-described problems, as discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-288013, a printing system can include application program(s), a printer driver and a printing device, in which standard print functions of the printing device are commonly usable while the printing device, if it has highly advanced functions, can use its value-added functions.
More specifically, the printer driver obtains device configuration information relating to the printing device, and produces the information relating to print functions of the printing device based on the obtained device configuration information, and notifies the produced print function information via the operating system to the application program.
The application program creates a print document based on the print function information, and instructs the printer driver to perform printing. The printer driver produces a print control command based on the print instruction and sends the produced print control command to the printing device. Thus, application data optimized for the printing device can be produced.
Furthermore, as discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-355492, an image forming apparatus can start print processing at a designated print time. In this case, the image forming apparatus obtains the data to be printed before starting the print processing. Then, when the print time has come, the image forming apparatus communicates with a server to determine whether there is any change in the data to be printed. If the data include any change, the image forming apparatus receives only the changed portion(s) to update the data, and performs the print processing based on the updated data.
Moreover, it may not be sufficient if a user can preferably use the functions of a printing device. The user may further want to speedily get a printed product. According to the conventional technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-288013, starting the print processing is not before user's print instruction. It is therefore difficult to reduce the time required for accomplishing the print processing.
Moreover, it is necessary to convert the application data into print format data processible in the printing device. According to the conventional technique discussed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2004-355492, the timing for converting the application data into the print format data processible in the printing device is not before the designated print time. It is therefore difficult to substantially reduce the time required for accomplishing the print processing.